Skeptics who say the public isn't ready for video-on-demand should drop by my house around 6:30 in the morning.

That's when my two young children scramble for the TiVo, almost smoking from capacity overload with the previous night's Scooby Doo. My kids aren't just TV viewers; they're TV schedulers. If they're any indication, a generation is growing up expecting to watch what they want when they want. Personal video recorders have given them a taste of what full on-demand will make possible.

And cable is feeding that appetite as well. According to Scientific-Atlanta research, current subscription VOD customers use the service 10 to 11 hours a month; 20% access it three to four times a day. Yes, the public is ready for VOD.

But is cable ready?

Certainly it is in terms of pipeline. Since 1996, the industry has made a heroic effort to wire the nation, deploying broadband plant and offering magnificent two-way capability that is being used for high-speed data and telephony.

But for VOD, plant investment is only the first step. I believe the key to cable's future is content.

Cable TV will offer a rich array of VOD and SVOD product from Hollywood, cable channels and broadcast. Satellite, via PVRs, will offer that product, too. However, if we only provide the same content as other services, there will be no compelling reasons for customers to choose cable.

Many people may not venture beyond the limited on-demand experience provided by PVRs. We need to communicate that the potential of VOD and SVOD isn't just having access to every episode of whatever is scheduled on hundreds of channels; it's also experiencing content created specifically for, and married to, VOD.

Other people see no real difference between cable and satellite. To them, ?it's all just TV.? That's one reason the current monthly digital churn rate is 6% to 8%. Like cable, direct broadcast satellite has added immeasurably to the TV landscape, including competitive pricing, multichannel video service to rural areas, ethnic and cultural programming and sports packages. But cable and satellite each have individual strengths in marketing and technology, and each can provide unique and meaningful experiences for consumers.

VOD is cable's opportunity to reestablish what makes us different, from a content, not just a distribution, point of view.

A generation ago an industry based on improving reception became a cultural force that changed television around the world. We provided original proprietary content to niched audiences looking for something ?regular? TV could never give them. Broadcast TV couldn't devote entire channels to news, sports, music, weather, food, travel and history. Technology plus branded content created franchises and transformed the culture.

Channels such as HBO, ESPN, AMC and CNN helped establish cable as the place where niche programming could work. The industry can reassert itself in the emerging world of TV by continuing that tradition. On-demand programmers need to create nonredundant, niched and focused content that the new digital consumer will find meaningful. Exclusive content on demand should be a part of the development of VOD.

Thinking along these lines, Rainbow has introduced the first editorial service designed solely for on-demand. Mag Rack, the video magazine rack, derives its name and inspiration from the special interest magazines found on newsstands. Mag Rack offers monthly ?issues? on subjects ranging from motorcycles to Shakespeare. None of the material has ever been on broadcast or cable TV before; it can only be accessed through an interface on a server. More important, each VOD issue has an editorial point of view that makes it an authority in its specialized subject. By establishing our VOD as depth of content, we provide added value to our consumers.

This is just one example of how cable can use VOD to meet the new demands of viewers. Rainbow has other similarly custom-produced and -designed services in development.

Admittedly, content is not the only consideration. At the moment, it is crucial and appropriate for the industry to focus on the logistics of pricing, packaging, server capacity and deals with movie studios. But, over time, original content will literally make the difference.

This is a seminal moment. We have an opportunity to reassert cable to consumers, not just with superior technology, but with superior programming.

And we have a limited time frame in which to act.

Josh Sapan is president and CEO of Rainbow Media Holdings.

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